They complained of being stressed by the thought of testifying against the Deputy President.

The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, ICC, at The Hague in The Netherlands was earlier this week hit by another blow after four witnesses pulled out of the case against Deputy President, William Ruto and his co-accused, Joshua arap Sang, Capital FM reported. There were reports that two more witnesses were likely to pull out of the case as it resumed on Tuesday, September 17, 2013.

The new twist came barely two days before the resumption of the trial. The witnesses include survivors of the Kiambaa Church arson attack which left up to 35 people killed at the height of the 2007 post-election violence. Ruto and Sang - both accused of perpetrating the violence – denied the charges when they appeared in court. In an email seen by Capital FM News, one of the witnesses said they decided to withdraw because of stress and lack of sleep due to the trial.

Several other witnesses have pulled out of the two cases previously. Observers say the latest withdrawals are likely to have a major impact on the Ruto and Sang cases because the Prosecutor's office largely relied on the witnesses testimonies at the confirmation stage. A Ugandan conflict resolution expert, David Matsanga, who had long predicted that the cases against William Ruto and Joshua Arap Sang will collapse, said it was a shame that the ICC Prosecutor was still continuing the case after the withdrawals.